GAMES 09: Interview with Nitin Mathew, RED Entertainment Distribution
We caught up with Nitin to talk about GAMES 09
We caught up with Nitin Mathew, Marketing Manager of RED Entertainment Distribution, one of the largest video game distribution companies in this region to talk about GAMES 09.
MEG: What’s GAMES 09 like compared to last year?
Bigger and Better! Bigger in terms of size, number of products, number of people, better venue, better timing, it’s the start of a nice season in Dubai.
MEG: What games are you showcasing this year?
We have all the major names in the gaming industry including Actvision Blizzard, Eidos, Sega and 2k. I’m very excited so far by what I have seen and I think by tomorrow we’re going to see a lot of people come through the doors and try out what I think is going to be the big blockbuster games of the next three to four months. We’re also showcasing some games that will release early next year like Bayonetta and Alien vs Predator. You also get to see Brutal Legend which is really awesome game and I’m looking forward to seeing Jack Black’s character.
We’re showing gameplay footgage of Modern Warfare 2 which everyone says is going to be the game of the year. DJ Hero is going down like a storm and so is Band Hero. I think the girls are doing a fantastic job of promoting Band Hero. We have had a lot of people up on stage. The demographics that are attending include male, female, young and old, across all language barriers. That’s the beauty of our music games, it attracts so many different kinds of people. A lot of people have also enjoyed games like Mini Ninjas, which has a slightly lower profile presence but it’s fun and people are enjoying that.
We have Batman: Arkham Asylum. Even though the game has already released, it’s so popular that we had to showcase it. We also have Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 and Sega All Stars Racing. EA is here in full force with Need for Speed: Shift and FIFA 10, which launched just yesterday, so people are playing it for the first time here, unless they went to the shops in the morning and purchased it.
I think FIFA 10 is going to do really well. It’s the best selling football game in the world.
We’re showing EA Sports Active. Very interesting to see kids trying out a fitness product. Women have tried it out too and had lots of fun.
We have Grandslam Tennis and Beatles: Rock Band which is really cool, and NBA Live 10, which we are launching next week.
MEG: What’s it like working on this event?
We have about 36 college students volunteering for this show. Actually a mix of school and college students, boys and girls, and they’re having a lot of fun. I’m having a nightmare [laughs], but it’s really cool and we’re having a lot of fun. We’ve been working on this project for the last 4-6 months but it’s all really come together this week. I think I have a rough idea of what a development team feels like in the last one week before a game goes gold.
MORE FROM THIS INTERVIEW WILL BE ADDED SOON
